Unit 1: The Word: God Calls Abraham’s Family
Key Verse:
Genesis 32:28 NLT
28 “Your name will no longer be Jacob,” the man told him. “From now on you will be called Israel,[c] because you have fought with God and with men and have won.”
God identifies with you by the name He has given to you. What is that name?
What you need to know
Genesis 31:1-3 NLT
1 But Jacob soon learned that Laban’s sons were grumbling about him. “Jacob has robbed our father of everything!” they said. “He has gained all his wealth at our father’s expense.” 2 And Jacob began to notice a change in Laban’s attitude toward him.
3 Then the Lord said to Jacob, “Return to the land of your father and grandfather and to your relatives there, and I will be with you.”
At the time o God’s choosing, it was time for God’s chosen to go home. As is the case with God, He will sometimes stir the pot of circumstances around you, and against you in order to get your attention. Once He has your attention, your undivided attention, God can move mountains … with you!
Mark 11:22-24 NLT
22 Then Jesus said to the disciples, “Have faith in God. 23 I tell you the truth, you can say to this mountain, ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen. But you must really believe it will happen and have no doubt in your heart. 24 I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you’ve received it, it will be yours.
It was time for Jacob to become a great nation, but it was not to be in Paddan-Aram, the place where he had toiled for some twenty years under Laban’s covetous gaze. God sent Jacob back to the land promised to his grandfather, Abraham. It was there that he would become a nation.
Genesis 31:51-55 NLT
51 “See this pile of stones,” Laban continued, “and see this monument I have set between us. 52 They stand between us as witnesses of our vows. I will never pass this pile of stones to harm you, and you must never pass these stones or this monument to harm me. 53 I call on the God of our ancestors—the God of your grandfather Abraham and the God of my grandfather Nahor—to serve as a judge between us.”
So Jacob took an oath before the fearsome God of his father, Isaac,[d] to respect the boundary line. 54 Then Jacob offered a sacrifice to God there on the mountain and invited everyone to a covenant feast. After they had eaten, they spent the night on the mountain.
55 [e]Laban got up early the next morning, and he kissed his grandchildren and his daughters and blessed them. Then he left and returned home.
Laban was furious when he discovered that Jacob had swept up his family and belongings and left in the dead of night for Canaan. But, as is always the case, if God is for you, He is more than the whole world against you. By the time Laban reached Jacob and his family, he had a change of heart. He released Jacob to go in peace to the land of his ancestors, the land promised to him.
Genesis 32:9-12 NLT
9 Then Jacob prayed, “O God of my grandfather Abraham, and God of my father, Isaac—O Lord, you told me, ‘Return to your own land and to your relatives.’ And you promised me, ‘I will treat you kindly.’ 10 I am not worthy of all the unfailing love and faithfulness you have shown to me, your servant. When I left home and crossed the Jordan River, I owned nothing except a walking stick. Now my household fills two large camps! 11 O Lord, please rescue me from the hand of my brother, Esau. I am afraid that he is coming to attack me, along with my wives and children. 12 But you promised me, ‘I will surely treat you kindly, and I will multiply your descendants until they become as numerous as the sands along the seashore—too many to count.’”
Having left Laban behind, Jacob faced another hurdle: the ire of his brother Esau, from whom he had wrested the birthright and blessing of their father, Issac. Now, heading back to Canaan, Jacob was horrified at the prospect of facing Esau and having to dispute with him concerning the very land that Esau remained in. After all, Esau had vowed to kill Jacob at the time of their father’s passing, which is why Jacob fled to Paddan-Aram some twenty years prior. It is the memory of Esau’s ire that Jacob must confront as he returns to the land of their birth. And so, as he has done so many times before, Jacob turns to God in prayer, reminding Him that He (God) has promised to make of him (Jacob) a great nation. Jacob has God’s guarantee on his life. Beloved, so do you!
Roman 4:21 NLT
21 He (Abraham) was fully convinced that God is able to do whatever he promises.
It was then that Jacob would face the only test that mattered. The test God himself would administer.
The Lesson
Genesis 32:22-23 NLT
22 During the night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two servant wives, and his eleven sons and crossed the Jabbok River with them. 23 After taking them to the other side, he sent over all his possessions.
So, as Jacob prepares to make his final passage into Cannan, he sends the last of his family and possessions across the Jabbok river ahead of him. In essence, he clears the table… and waits. At this point, his old life is completely behind him… in the temporal. What God has for him now awaits him.
Genesis 32:24 NLT
24 This left Jacob all alone in the camp, and a man came and wrestled with him until the dawn began to break.
The Bible tells us that an unidentified man meets Jacob in the camp alone and that they begin to wrestle, to struggle until the break of day. I found myself wondering about this episode. Why this struggle? Why now? Why here? Ultimately, the question must be asked, “Who is Jacob? Why would God would defy him at Jabbok?”
Genesis 32:25 NLT
25 When the man saw that he would not win the match, he touched Jacob’s hip and wrenched it out of its socket.
When it became apparent that the Angel of the Lord could not overcome Jacob, He touched Jacob’s hip, apparently wrenching it from its socket. Under any other circumstances, this struggle would have ceased. Jacob would have been defeated. But, this was no ordinary circumstance. God was forging something in Jacob. It would take the death of his flesh for him to become the man that could walk in God’s promise.
Genesis 32:26 NLT
26a Then the man said, “Let me go, for the dawn is breaking!”
Midway through the test. Wait! What? (smile)... Midway through the test, the Angel of the Lord demands that Jacob release him. Jacob didn’t start this fight, but he certainly intends to see it through. Even after a debilitating injury, Jacob refuses to quit. However, dawn is breaking, and this conflict must come to an end.
Genesis 32:26b NLT
26b But Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”
Beloved, believe or not, Jacob is now holding onto the only thing he has left to hold onto; God. He must not let go. In this moment, he is suspended between Heaven and Earth, between life and death, between the temporal and the spiritual. For Jacob, he is already beyond the point of no return. He’s right where God wants Him.
Genesis 32:27a NLT
27a “What is your name?” the man asked.
While in this posture of great distress, of both the Angel of the Lord and Jacob, the Anel of the Lord inquires of Jacob, “What is your name?” Alongside that question, we must ask, “What is in a name?”, “What meaning does my name bring to my life?” All valid questions Beloved.
Genesis 32:27b NLT
27b He replied, “Jacob.”
Oftentimes, the name our parents give us at birth shapes our character for our lifetime. That was certainly Jacob’s lot. At birth, he was called Jacob, which meant “heel grabber”, “supplanter”, or “pursuer”. To some, he was simply a thief. Whatever the case, Jacob was Jacob. His name identified his primary character traits. Jacob had destiny written on him. He knew it. His mother knew it. He spent his entire life, up to this point, proving it to anyone who asked. Listen, on the one hand, the name ‘Jacob’ may have been considered a slur, a derogatory name meant to demean the bearer each time it was called. But from his own mouth, it was the name he, (Jacob) owned. At some level, even in this life and death struggle, it was more a declaration than a reply. Anytime Jacob spoke his own name, he demanded that you put some respect on it. Up to this point in his life, he had earned that right.
Genesis 32:28 NLT
28 “Your name will no longer be Jacob,” the man told him. “From now on you will be called Israel,[c] because you have fought with God and with men and have won.”
The King James rendering of this verse declares that Jacob has ‘prevailed’ in his bout with the Angel of the Lord. In fact, in that very moment, God declares a new name for Jacob; Israel, meaning “One who has prevailed with God!” Israel, (Jacob’s new name) has broken through! And the gift that God conferred upon him? A name that would forever identify him as one who had favor with God. No longer a thief. He had standing with God!
Genesis 32:29 NLT
29 “Please tell me your name,” Jacob said.
“Why do you want to know my name?” the man replied. Then he blessed Jacob there.
In response to the changing of his name, Israel (formerly Jacob) asks the name of the Blessor. It is in this moment that His identity is revealed. The Angel of the Lord refuses to identify Himself to Israel. By doing so, He follows a thread of occurrences in Scripture where a Theophany, or perhaps more accurately, a Christophany. A Theophany is defined as a visible manifestation of God to mankind. A Christophany is defined as a pre-incarnate appearance of Christ in the Old Testament or a post-resurrection appearance of Christ. In every pre-incarnate appearing, Christ is either identified as ‘the Angel of Lord, or the Son of God or given a pseudonym, ie. Melchizedek. This lack of identification of the ‘Man’ who wrestled with Jacob, who had the power to leave him with a permanent limp, just by the touch of His hand, and to confer a blessing o Him that would elevate Jacob into royalty, who could that be but God. Furthermore, the idea of a wrestling match with God? Where does that come from except from the heart of a loving Savior who is willing to make Himself manifest to our benefit? Jesus is the Word, and that Word is sharper than any two-edged sword. The Word of God is able to divide between soul and spirit. In essence, the Word knows exactly what we need and exactly what we don’t. God provided Jacob with a challenge that facilitated the removal of the worst parts of Jacob’s soulish nature and exposed the spiritual nature that God desired. The spiritual nature upon which God would build a holy nation, a royal priesthood, a chosen people. It was God in the flesh; Jesus with Whom Jacob wrestled that night. From that night on, he would o longer be identified as a thief. Hw would forever be known as Israel.
Genesis 32:30 NLT
30 So Jacob called the name of the place [j]Peniel: “For I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.”
Here’s the good news. Jacob knew. He knew exactly with whom He had wrestled. He knew exactly who it was that had blessed him. He knew all of this, and he treasured the moment for the remainder of his life. He had seen God, and he had been eternally changed as a result. Beloved, each of us has a testimony. That testimony should include the memory of the day that we encountered God “face to face”.
Job 14:14 NKJV
14
If a man dies, shall he live again?
All the days of my hard service I will wait,
Till my change comes.
Genesis 32:31-32 NLT
31 Just as he crossed over [k]Penuel the sun rose on him, and he limped on his hip. 32 Therefore to this day the children of Israel do not eat the muscle that shrank, which is on the hip socket, because He [l]touched the socket of Jacob’s hip in the muscle that shrank.
Israel left that place with a limp. That symbolized the death of his flesh, his earthy strength on the far side of the brook. When he crossed into the land of promise, he left the old life behind. He had been liberated. He was a ‘new’ man, forever changed. With that limp, he would forever have to rely on a staff, a rod for support. Beloved, forever must we lean on the Word of God for support. Embrace the limp.
Psalm 23:4 NKJV
4
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
Selah,
wb
Psalm 119:49-50 NLT
49
Remember the word to Your servant,
Upon which You have caused me to hope.
50
This is my comfort in my affliction,
For Your word has given me life.
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